I'm not a great drummer. I'm good. I'm competent. I'm solid. And even though I'm not actively playing right now, if I practiced consistently for a few weeks I'd be gig-ready again. But still, I'm not great, and it's for a simple reason. I just haven't played enough. Now, I'm a great public speaker. I'm a great writer. And it's for a similarly simple reason: I've done those activities a lot. Someone was asking me how I've written 7 books in the past few years. Easy. I just write and write and write. Since drumming didn't stay a part of my life on a daily basis, I never got great at it. I still love playing, but I'll admit … [Read more...]
What Really Follows a Train Wreck
When you are playing in a band, there's something called a train wreck. It's when everyone gets so off beat/tempo/key that you have to stop. The song is off the tracks and there's no way to recover it. You have to stop and start over. It's never fun. I still have a memory of a train wreck at the Beat Kitchen in Chicago, and that was almost 20 years ago. It's a very public screw-up. I mean, you're literally on a stage for everybody to see. It's not a private failure that we can beat ourselves up about and move on. It's a big deal. Or so we think. Olin Miller was a comedian who was quoted in 1937, “You probably wouldn’t worry … [Read more...]
Make Something
Just before the new year I got to revisit my past. My friend Rob and I went to a ska show, something that I spent a lot of time doing, oh, about 20 years ago. Mustard Plug, a stalwart Michigan band from back in the day, was on their 25th-Anniversay tour and stopped in Chicago. I spent a Wednesday night staying out too late, jumping around, and pretending to be a lot younger than I really am. On the way there we were talking about how much technology is available today for kids to record music. I remember renting an 8-track deck and microphones to record demos in the basement of my apartment. These days you can just plug a mic into … [Read more...]
Today is the Only Day You Can Start
Today is the best day to start your New Year's Resolutions. By the way, it doesn't matter when you read this sentence. It's always true. Whether you read it on January 2nd, January 3rd, or April 6th...today is the best day to start your New Year's Resolutions. We only have now. If you want to make a change in your life, you have to do it now. Today. Here. My friend Tara read my article on creating lasting change and pointed out that one of the negative side effects of goal-setting is that it gives us the chance to push off taking action. In fact, it seems that most New Year's Resolutions are goals we come up with around Dec … [Read more...]
Progress Isn’t a Straight Line
There's a meme that's been around for a while about reality vs. perception when considering the path to success. It compares the over-simplified straight line that most external observers see with the crazy squiggled line of what progress actually looks like for those working towards a worthy goal. I think this meme resonates with a truth that most of us get. It's easy to understand how an external observer won't grasp the blood, sweat, and tears that go into being successful at an endeavor. All they usually see is the end result. But I think we actually miss the way that this understanding can help us on a daily basis. Instead of … [Read more...]
Why Election Results Aren’t the Secret to Better Days
Tomorrow is election day here in the U.S. It's the finale of an exhausting, frustrating, and sometimes bafflingly-stupid election cycle that has gone on too long. Don't worry. Besides reminding you to vote, I'm not going to talk politics. But I am going to shine a light on the foolishness of thinking your candidate is going to magically make your life better. Some people are going to be happy when the ballots are tallied, some are going to be upset, but all of us are going to get up on Wednesday, and go about the business of living our lives. Humans seem to be wired to think that there is a certain "something" that will make … [Read more...]
The Difference Between “Going Perfectly” and “Being Perfect”
If you had a chance to read last month's MMMU, you'll know between then and now I had a bit of a major life event...I got married. It was an amazing weekend full of all of the people that we love, and the wedding day itself was one that I'll always remember. After the wedding, I heard my wife (still getting used to saying that) tell someone that it had been a perfect day. I agreed with her, but it made me think about the difference between something being perfect and going perfectly. We all want the former, and chase the later because we think we need the later to get the former. But we don't. Let me explain. When something goes … [Read more...]
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